Peter Gabriel’s 10th album has been described as the art-pop version of Gun N’ Roses’ Chinese Democracy. Happily, this refers to the project’s decades-long gestation and repeated delays rather than to any tendency towards infinite guitar solos or turgid piano balladry.
But, yes, it has been quite a while coming. Gabriel conceived the project in the mid-90s, working through over 130 songs before settling on the final track listing. Of course, as Genesis fans will tell you, the singer was never one for the obvious route. In the 70s, he caused widespread bewilderment – not least among his bandmates – by performing from behind elaborate flower and fox masks.
Fifty years on, he is still politely declining to follow the rules. His latest LP arrives at the tail-end of a unique promotional campaign that has seen all 12 tracks shared in one form or another, each release coinciding with a phase of the lunar cycle.
It’s even more complicated than that. Gabriel has recorded two mixes – a “light” and “dark” side, available in separate vinyl editions. In practice, the light side is slightly jauntier. The dark one has more bass, and Gabriel sounds glummer, as if he’s been watching too much I’m A Celebrity…
Unfortunately, the music isn’t quite as ambitious as the framing. Opener “Panopticom” has complicated lyrics about “the creation of an infinitely expandable accessible data globe”. But the chorus is just the title repeated over and over. He then gets together with Brian Eno for the Radiohead-esque “Road to Joy” and channels Paul Simon’s “You Can Call Me All” on joyously jaunty “Olive Tree”.
Gabriel is a conscientious tunesmith. To that end, a steady stream of hooks and melodies prevent i/o from ever becoming truly portentous, even as the songs delve loftily into AI or the climate crisis. At least that’s true until closer “Live and Let Live”. It’s a Bono-worthy plea for peace, love and understanding so condescendingly on the nose, the listener’s nostrils may recoil (“It takes courage…To learn to forgive”).
If ambitious and well-intentioned, Gabriel’s moonage daydream ultimately underwhelms.
Stream: “Road to Joy”, “Olive Tree”